Month: June 2016

Herb of the Day for June 6th is Bay

Herb of the Day

Bay

Bay Laurel,  Noble Laurel, Roman Laurel, Sweet Bay    


The leaves, berries and oil have excitant and narcotic properties. Bay is  well known for it’s ability to relieve the aches and pains associated with rheumatism, and for sprains, bruises, and skin rashes.  Distill an oil from the leaves and rub on the affected areas, or make an ointment to rub into affected areas. Heat leaves in a little olive oil to make a bay oil salve for arthritis and aches.                                                                                                                       
Used externally as a poultice on the chest for bronchitis and coughs. The Berries have are considered useful in the for suppressed menstruation and womb problems, as well as being taken during childbirth when the delivery is imminent to help expel afterbirth. Lesser doses are diaphoretic while large doses are emetic.

Magickal Uses: The leaves are burned to enhance psychic powers and to produce visions. Place beneath the pillow for prophetic dreams and inhale for visions. Worn in an amulet, it will provide protection from evil and negativity. The leaves are used as decorations during the Yule season, and placed in your window it will protect against lightning striking your house. Write a wish on a bay leaf and then burn it if you want the wish to come true. Sprinkling the crushed leaves in your cupboards will keep out cockroaches and other insect pests. To ensure lasting love, a couple should break a twig off the tree, then break the twig in two and each keep a half. If worn during competition, it gives strength to those in wrestling and athletic sport.

Properties: Astringent, bitter, carminative, diuretic, emetic, emmenogogue, narcotic, nervine, aromatic, stimulant, digestive aid, locally antiseptic, antiparasitic, expectorant. Contains parthenolides. The plant also contains tannic acid and bitters.         

Growth: A slow growing, pyramidal, perennial evergreen tree native to the Mediterranean region and Asia Minorwhich can reach a height of 40 to 60 feet. The bark is smooth and olive green to a reddish hue. The evergreen leaves are smooth, shiny, dark, aromatic, and alternate with short stalks and lanceolate 3 to 4 inches long, the margin being smooth and wavy. The flowers are inconspicuous, small, creamy yellow, having no petals, unisexual, composed of 4-lobed calyxes which are greenish-yellow in small umbels from the leaf axils. One-seeded fruit is purple to black, but when dried the berries (1/2″ diameter) are black and aromatic.
Reference:
Author: Crick
Website: The Whispering Woods

Deity of the Day for June 6th is Papa Legba

Deity of the Day

Papa Legba

Legba is the gatekeeper to the spirit world, known as Vilokan. Rituals begin with a prayer to Legba to open those gates so that participants can gain access to the other lwas. The veves of these other lwas are often drawn intersecting the branches of Legba’s veve to represent this.

Legba is also strongly associated with the sun and is seen as a life-giver, transferring the power of Bondye to the material world and all that lives within it.

This further strengthens his role as the bridge between realms.

His association with creation, generation and life makes him a common lwa to approach with matters of sex, and his position as a conduit of Bondye’s will makes him a lwa of order and destiny.

Finally, Legba is a lwa of the crossroads, and offerings are often made there for him. His symbol is the cross, which also symbolizes the intersection of material and spiritual worlds.

Other names:Legba is often affectionately referred to as Papa Legba.
Lwa Family: Rada
Gender: Male
Associated Catholic Saint: St. Peter, who holds the keys to the gate of heaven
Holiday: November 1, All Saints Day
Offerings:Roosters
Appearance:An old man who walks with a cane. He carries a sack on a strap across one shoulder from which he dispenses dentiny.

Alternate Personality: Legba’s Petro form is Met Kafou Legba. He represents destruction rather than creation and is a trickster who introduces chaos and disruption. He is associated with the moon and night.

 

Reference:

 

 

 

WOTC Quiz: Are You in a State of True Being?

Are You in a State of True Being?

By: Annie B. Bond

Many teachings focus on how to develop the state of true being. Although the word “being” sounds passive, a state of true being is highly dynamic. It embodies a quiet flow of deep awareness.

Take this quiz to see how close you may be to experiencing a state of true being:

See how many of these statements are TRUE for you:

* I experience immediate attention to the here and now.

* I experience a sense of newness in all my activities, no matter how repetitive.

* I experience peacefulness.

* My perception accentuates the environment more, focusing less on myself.

* I feel a sense of rightness or perfection about everything.

* I experience little or no thought.

* I experience a touching, or at least a getting closer to, my core nature.

* I feel a strong, clear connection with the world.

* I experience reality as a reflection of myself.

* I feel an innate sense of purpose.

* I experience a complete abandon or surrender.

* I feel nonattachment.

* I experience balanced energies.

* I feel unconditional love.

* I experience joy and/or bliss.

* I feel patience.

* I experience the sense of residing in a timeless present that stretches throughout eternity.

No matter how many of these statements were or were not true for you, these are all experiences that are attainable with practice. This book is a helpful guide to reaching a true state of being.

Adapted from On the Toltec Path, by Ken Eagle Feather (Inner Traditions, 2006). Copyright (c) 2006 by Ken Eagle Feather. Reprinted by permission of Inner Traditions.
Adapted from On the Toltec Path, by Ken Eagle Feather (Inner Traditions, 2006).

Quiz originally published on Care2.com

Astronomy Picture of the Day – The Supernova and Cepheids of Spiral Galaxy

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2016 June 6

The Supernova and Cepheids of Spiral Galaxy UGC 9391
Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Riess (STScI/JHU) et al.

 

Explanation: What can this galaxy tell us about the expansion rate of the universe? Perhaps a lot because UGC 9391, featured, not only contains Cepheid variable stars (red circles) but also a recent Type Ia supernova (blue X). Both types of objects have standard brightnesses, with Cepheids typically being seen relatively nearby, while supernovas are seen much farther away. Therefore, this spiral is important because it allows a calibration between the near and distant parts of our universe. Unexpectedly, a recent analysis of new Hubble data from UGC 9391 and several similar galaxies has bolstered previous indications that Cepheids and supernovas are expanding with the universe slightly faster than expected from expansion measurements of the early universe. Given the multiple successes of early universe concordance cosmology, astrophysicists are now vigorously speculating about possible reasons for this discrepancy. Candidate explanations range from the sensational, such as the inclusion of unusual cosmological components types such as phantom energy and dark radiation, to the mundane, including statistical flukes and underestimated sources of systematic errors. Numerous future observations are being planned to help resolve the conundrum.

Earth Sky News for June 6th: Find the Little Dipper

Find the Little Dipper

Tonight … how to find the Little Dipper using the Big Dipper as a guide. The Big Dipper is easy to find, but the Little Dipper isn’t. You need a dark sky to see the Little Dipper, so be sure to avoid city lights. The good news is that the feeble light of the young waxing crescent moon – in the west after sundown on the evening of June 6, 2016 – shouldn’t interfere with your ability to see the faint Little Dipper stars for some nights to come.

On June evenings, you can find the Big Dipper high in the north. Notice that it has two parts – a bowl and a handle. Look at the outer two stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper, those stars farthest from the handle. Those stars are sometimes called The Pointers because they point to the North Star, also known as Polaris. And Polaris is the last star in the handle of the Little Dipper.

The Little Dipper isn’t a constellation. It’s an asterism, or noticeable star pattern. The Little Dipper belongs to the constellation Ursa Minor the Little Bear.

Kochab and Pherkad: Guardians of the Pole

Richard Hinkley Allen in his book Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning claims the Greek constellation Ursa Minor was never mentioned in the literary works of Homer (9th century B.C.) or Hesiod (8th century B.C.). That’s probably because this constellation hadn’t been invented yet, that long ago.

According to the Greek geographer and historian Strabo (63 B.C. to A.D. 21?), the seven stars we see today as part of Ursa Minor (the Little Dipper) didn’t carry that name until 600 B.C. or so. Before that time, people saw this group of stars outlining the wings of the constellation Draco the Dragon.

When the seafaring Phoenicians visited the Greek philosopher Thales around 600 B.C., they showed him how to navigate by the stars. Purportedly, Thales clipped the Dragon’s wings to create a new constellation, possibly because this new way of looking at the stars enabled Greek sailors to more easily locate the north celestial pole.

But it’s not just our names for things in the sky that change. The sky itself changes, too. In our day, Polaris closely marks the north celestial pole in the sky. In 600 B.C. – thanks to the motion of precession – the stars Kochab and Pherkad more closely marked the position of the north celestial pole.

Bottom line: You can easily find the Big Dipper high in the north on June evenings. Use the two outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper to find Polaris, the North Star. Polaris marks the end of the handle of the Little Dipper.

 

Author

Bruce McClure

Bruce McClure has served as lead writer for EarthSky’s popular Tonight pages since 2004. He’s a sundial aficionado, whose love for the heavens has taken him to Lake Titicaca in Bolivia and sailing in the North Atlantic, where he earned his celestial navigation certificate through the School of Ocean Sailing and Navigation. He also writes and hosts public astronomy programs and planetarium programs in and around his home in upstate New York.

Article published on EarthSky

 

Your Daily Influences for June 6, 2016

Your Daily Influences
June 6, 2016

 

 

The Hierophant
A lover of tradition and ceremony, The Hierophant needs social approval and appreciates the positive aspects of conformity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Naudhiz
Naudhiz reversed may tell of needs met and harmonious relationships. Your passions for someone or something may be at their pinnacle.

 

 

 

Pisces the Fishes
This aspect of your life will be strongly influenced by a person who is escapist and idealistic, secretive and vague, weak-willed and easily led. This person probably relies to heavily upon you to make decisions for them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Daily Influences represent events and challenges the current day will present for you. They may represent opportunities you should be ready to seize. Or they may forewarn you of problems you may be able to avoid or lessen. Generally it is best to use them as tips to help you manage your day and nothing more.

Your Daily Charm for June 6th is Pisces The Fish

Your Charm for Today

Today’s Meaning:
This aspect of your life will be strongly influenced by a person who is imaginative, sensitive, compassionate, kind, selfless, unworldly, intuitive and sympathetic. This person could be merely an acquaintance who has influence with people in your circle.

General Description:
Twelfth sign of the Zodiac, Feb 19th to March 20th. Ruled by the planet Jupiter; correct metal, Tin. Those born under the influence of Pisces were believed to be highly emotional, imaginative, observant, artistic, musical, precise and prudent. The gem for Pisces is the Amethyst, whose occult properties were firmly believed in by the ancients. The Egyptians wore these stones as amulets against witchcraft, and for success in their undertakings. The Amethyst is also called The Bishops Stone from its supposed soothing influence, imparting a pious calm in time of danger. The stone was believed to confer happiness on the newly married.

Casting the MahJong Tiles, Your Tile Reading for the Month of June

Your MahJong Tile Reading for the Month of June

This Reading is used to reveal key influences that will effect your life this month.

Wan 6
Symbol: Fire
The Fire tile is a strong warning that something is wrong or out of balance. The Fire tile is a warning. Your resources are in jeopardy. These endangered resources may be financial or spiritual or physical. In fact, resources of all types may be in danger.

Shuffling the Cards, Your Ancient Symbol Guide for the Week of June 6th

Your Ancient Symbol Guide for the Upcoming Week

The Western Dragon

Unlike the beneficent Easter Dragon, The Western Dragon is a symbol of totally unleashed destructive power that is set upon anyone who crosses the Dragon’s path. The Western Dragon also hordes treasures that should rightfully be ours, and whose absence deprives us from being complete. The challenges set before us by the Western Dragon are truly prodigious, because they denote a force whose sole intent is not simply to keep us from moving forward in our lives, but to usurp all that we have previously gained as well. What is even more disturbing about the force behind the Western Dragon is that it may well indicate primal forces in ourselves so powerful that they do in fact turn us into our own worst enemy.

Your Ancient Symbol Card for June 6th is The Tree

Your Ancient Symbol Card for Today

The Tree



The Tree symbolizes spiritual health and growth. The healthy tree is rooted in a rich, nurturing medium, has a strong trunk from which leaf laden branches fan out to capture the sun’s energy. The Tree represents a healthy spirit entrenched in experience and strengthened by wisdom. It is a spirit that is happy with itself, but continues reaching to become even wiser, more complete, happier, stronger. While The Tree represents a strong and independent spirit, it is also a life-force that owes much of its strength and growth to being surrounded by other healthy spirits.

As a daily card, The Tree denotes a time when your spiritual self is especially powerful and open for further growth. Now is a time for you to seek out streams of wisdom and knowledge that you can not only draw from but contribute to as well. Don’t disregard sources that seem improbable, as they often produce the most profound revelations and spiritual expansion.

Your Daily Witches Rune for June 6th is The Blank Rune

Witches Rune for the Day

The Blank Rune

Meaning: This is a rune of difficulty and negative influences will rule your life for a time, but as all difficulties are a learning experience it will lead to improved personal perspective and progress on your life’s path. Always consult the surrounding runes with this stone. If it lies with a positive stone, it indicates that the pain of this experience will lead to a beneficial change in circumstances